I Gave Away the Birthday Chocolates, Then the Screaming Started

color of paper. A white hospital bracelet circled his wrist. There was a bruise on his forearm where an IV had been placed. The monitor beside him blipped green lines with a steady insistence that felt obscene.

I moved to his bedside slowly, like sudden movement might break him.

“Hey, kiddo,” I whispered.

His eyelids fluttered, then opened. For a second continue reading …